Hiked up Saturday to find Blondie, Radek and Shirley's dog at a campsite on Wing Lake. I knew then that they must have climbed that day already. Saw them along with Radek's brother and Haydar descending shortly after. Met Tazz and her friends Dicey and Mark(?) as well.

Stove had issues that night so dinner for Anette and I was cold chicken from a can and tepid Spanish rice. Mmm mmmm good! Annie's knee bothered her on Sunday so I started out solo at 7 am. The route is straightforward if you stick to the ridge and don't go left into the looser gully from the saddle. The last 15 feet or so are 4th or low 5th class but not super exposed. Amazing views of glaciers and peaks. Was back down at camp before 10:30 and the long hike out.

Oh yeah, did I mention we got off trail on the right side of Lewis Lake and bushwhacked into not one, not two but 5 black bears? (2 moms and 3 cubs) Had to yell at the last two so they weren't surprised by us. Oh yes, the blueberries aren't just for climbers anymore.

Climbed with Shirley, Radek and his brother Tom as a day trip. Somehow I thought the cimbing was on good rock along a knife edge but was quite surprised to find out that the ridge was very loose and ledgy instead. Great views despite the haze from wildfires. The highlight of the trip (besides the spontaneous SP get together) was the mermaid at Lewis Lake!

NE Ridge car to car. Chosspile (esp. lower 1/2) but easy climbing and GREAT views! Shirley, Haydar, and my little brother (1st alpine outing) did this as two teams of two. On way down, ran into SP-ers Brian Jenkins and Anette as well as Tazz, Dicey and a gentleman whose name I unfortunately don't recall (my apologies!)! Nice meeting everyone and twas nice to shoot the breeze. Now need to come back for the South Face route...yeah, I'm there!

PS Oh yeah, my brother and Haydar saw a mermaid at one of the lower lakes ;)

The talus field on the way to Wing Lake was a bit of a slog but the views from the summit made it well worth it. The ridge from the saddle to the summit presents litte in the way of route finding difficulty except for one Class 3-4 move right near the top. There is a lot of loose stuff on the ridge, however, so having a helmet along and staying tight together is a good idea.

8/21/04 - Simulclimed this nice ridge in 9.75 hours car to car with 3 others. This was a simulclimbing skills seminar that I helped teach. Had a great time. We were really lucky with the weather. It started sprinkling at the base of the ridge, then cleared off for an hour. When we reached the summit, it downpoured on us. Rained most of the way back. I was really happy we got the climb in. One of my favorite easy routes ever.

Beautiful mountain! Great views looking west towards the Ptarmigan traverse and Glacier peak. Wing lake was still ~2/3 frozen over. The rock in the gully is loose and crumbly, near the summit the quality improves.

Spectacular views from this crumbly mountain! Summit ridge is sharp and thin. Climbed a couple of pitches to the summit instead of the standard finish. One of my favorite mountains for views, ruggedness, colors, lakes, height, and day-hikeability.